Franchise Tag Window Opens Tuesday — Why the Eagles Won't Use It (Again)

The franchise tag window opens Tuesday, and across the NFL, front offices are agonizing over which players to slap with the most controversial designation in professional sports. In Philadelphia, Howie Roseman won't even glance at the paperwork. The Eagles haven't used the franchise tag since DeSean Jackson in 2012 — 14 years ago — and nothing about this roster suggests that streak is about to end.

It's not stubbornness. It's philosophy. And it's one of the more underrated aspects of how the Eagles operate.

'We Want Volunteers, Not Hostages'

Mike Tomlin's famous line about the franchise tag perfectly encapsulates why the Eagles avoid it. Nobody is happy when they get tagged. It's a one-year deal at an inflated number that prevents a player from testing the open market, and it poisons the relationship between player and organization every single time.

The Eagles' entire organizational philosophy is built around wanting players who want to be here. It's reportedly why A.J. Brown's future in Philadelphia is uncertain — not because the Eagles can't keep him, not because the cap math doesn't work, but because if he truly doesn't want to be an Eagle anymore, they're not going to force it. You can agree or disagree with that approach, but at least it's consistent.

Think about it from Howie Roseman's perspective. He's been the decision-maker since roughly 2012. In that span, the Eagles have been to three NFC Championship games, two Super Bowls, and won a ring. All without ever needing to hold a player hostage with the tag. Why change what works?

Who Would They Even Tag?

Even if the Eagles were inclined to use the franchise tag, who's the candidate? Jaelan Phillips is the only free agent who even enters the conversation, and when you look at what edge rushers command on the franchise tag — north of $24 million for one year — it makes zero financial sense. Not when the Eagles are already working toward a long-term deal with Phillips.

The franchise tag works best as a placeholder: slap it on a player to prevent him from hitting the market while you negotiate an extension. But the Eagles don't need that safety net with Phillips. They traded a third-round pick for him mid-season specifically because they intended to keep him. The negotiations will happen at the Combine, during the legal tampering period, and through March. The tag is unnecessary.

Around the League, It's a Different Story

While the Eagles sit this out, the rest of the NFC East might not be so lucky. Dallas, in particular, is widely expected to franchise tag George Pickens. That's the kind of move bad organizations make — acquire a talented but volatile player via trade, then use the tag to prevent him from leaving because you can't figure out the long-term finances. It's reactive, not proactive.

The Cowboys are paying CeeDee Lamb north of $35 million per year. Pickens arguably outplayed Lamb last season. Good luck explaining to Pickens why he should take less. That's the franchise tag trap: it creates more problems than it solves, and it almost always ends with the player either holding out, mailing it in, or leaving the following year with maximum resentment.

The Bigger Picture

The Eagles' avoidance of the franchise tag is really a reflection of their broader roster-building strategy. Roseman prefers to get ahead of contracts rather than react to them. He extends players early when the cap numbers are favorable. He trades players when the return outweighs the cost of re-signing them. And when someone wants out, he lets them go rather than creating a toxic situation.

It's not perfect — no system is — but it's why the Eagles have maintained a competitive roster year after year despite significant turnover. They don't need the franchise tag because they don't put themselves in positions where it's the only option.

Tuesday will come and go. The Eagles won't tag anyone. And the 14-year streak will quietly extend to 15. That's not a failure of imagination. It's a feature of the system.